The summit must by especially sweet for Beidelman, the 51-year-old Aspen engineer, father, guide and photographer who was guiding on Everest in 1996 when eight climbers were killed in a brutal storm, a tragedy documented in John Krakauer’s “Into Thin Air.”
Davenport, a member of the Everest 2011 team, skied all 54 of Colorado’s 14ers in a single calendar year, ending in 2007 – read about that here – catching the perfect window of weather for nearly every mountain.

Dav likes to say he is fluent in mountain speak – meaning he is attune to the often unheard yet message-laden murmurings of the snowy hills when he climbs and skis – and his push up Everest is yet another example that he may be one of the top mountain linguists out there.

Jason Blevins likes snow, water and dirt, especially when mixed with mountains and gravity. He covers skiing, tourism and mountain culture for The Denver Post.
You can reach me at jblevins@denverpost.com.